Yard MD: Connect to your garden passions and heritage this winter

Dec. 5, 2013

Succulents and other plants can be grown indoors all season long in creative and interesting ways, including in pots, colorful containers, bricks, terrariums and indoor miniature gardens. Combine with other natural elements such as seashells, rocks, pine cones and more for an even deeper connection to your garden. / ROB ZIMMER/Post-Crescent Media

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VIDEO, PHOTO GALLERY

For video and a photo gallery featuring beautiful ways to bring nature indoors, see this story online at postcrescent.com.

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This is part one of a three-part Winter Gardening Series from Yard MD Rob Zimmer. Coming next week: Orchids for beginners.

One of the most rewarding ways to keep your green thumb alive during the coldest months of the year is to bring nature indoors during winter.

There are so many reasons to stay connected to your garden and the outdoors that go beyond a love for plants.

The connections we have to our gardens, to our families, to the places we have traveled and to our past are all linked together through our love and passion for the natural world. By bringing it indoors, we are truly making our homes a deeper part of us.

An emotional connection

There is an emotional connection that many gardeners feel, not only to the plants they nurture but to family members, friends and places as well.

“We can still hit that emotional connection with today’s generations,” said Deb Willis, retail manager of Lowney’s Landscaping and the Gathered Earth gift shop, Appleton.

At her shop, customers are able to see how fulfilling and enriching an experience it can be to bring nature indoors, as well as take classes covering miniature gardening, container design and more. Better yet, that love and passion for the garden can be shared with younger generations as families learn together.

“Providing the visuals, as we do here, is so important to people. They’re seeing things and it’s sparking that interest and that passion.”

The design concepts of creating one-of-a-kind indoor creations from natural items and elements are simple, said Willis.

“You need metal, you need nature, you need glass. If you have that list in your head, and keep it there, you can do wonders,” she said.

Connected to the past

Bringing nature indoors is not just a hobby. It can become a new way of thinking and a new way of life. And by involving family members and children at a young age, you can help create a lifelong love, respect and admiration for nature.

Erica Smith, visual merchandiser alongside Willis, says that, without realizing it, she has passed her love of nature onto her children in surprising ways.

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“Now my kids are looking more closely at nature, as well,” she said. “They see me looking for things in the forest and looking at natural items more closely, and in a different way, and now they are paying more attention to what’s around them.”

For Smith, bringing nature indoors makes her feel more connected to the beauty of the natural world and places she has traveled.

“We have this rock fireplace mantle that I’ve always hated,” she said. “We took a trip to Portland, Ore., recently and I collected all of these sand dollars from the beach there. Part of me making that fireplace mantle more friendly was placing those sand dollars on the rocks.”

Smith also gathered a favorite piece of birch bark from her property and placed it on the mantle, creating a beautiful, natural and memorable element inside her home.

“Now I feel much more connected to that fireplace, and it recalls our trip out there,” she said. “Another great thing is that people ask about it, and that helps you stay connected to those memories.”

No secret, just passion

There isn’t a lot of mystery to bringing nature indoors. There’s no secret to the design. It’s all in your individual passion. Find things that interest you and delight you, combine them in a pleasing way, add additional elements such as glass and metal, and the results will always warm your heart.

Take a journey out into your garden or property after reading this column and see what captures your passion. It may be the dried flower heads on a hydrangea shrub, it may be a rock with interesting colors or patterns. It may be an interesting fungus clinging to a tree. It may be a colorful feather hidden among the leaves.

Gather some old glass bottles or jars from a thrift shop or dollar store and place these items inside. Instantly, you’ve created a one-of-a-kind item of natural beauty, filled with your own personal memories and an instant connection to your garden or yard.

The idea garden

If you need inspiration in your quest to bring the natural world indoors, simply visit a florist, craft store, nature center or greenhouse near you.

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Instantly, you will be besieged with ideas, from creating miniature gardens and terrariums, to using full-sized branches, twigs, vines and other natural elements to create indoor decor.

Rocks, seashells, pine cones, mosses, feathers, dried plants of many kinds, living plants, succulents, and so much more beg your passionate touch.

In addition to creating indoor decorations, miniature gardens and terrariums, you can also bring the natural world indoors in other ways.

You can make your own natural papers using plant fibers and elements from your garden. Make homemade candles, soaps, bath salts, vinegars, scented oils and other items using your garden treasures as well.

Create your own potpourri using rose petals, rosehips, dried herbs, pine cones, leaves and other items along with fragrant oils.

You can even create pillows, dolls and other items, stuffed with fresh herbs, pine needles, dried or crushed flowers and other items.

To help you get started on your journey toward making a natural connection, see my video and photo gallery online with this story.